How can a nightmare feel so sweet? How can it seem like what her younger self has been yearning for all this time but failed to reach? Heather harshly wiped the tears that's been cascading from her face and crossed the pedestrian lane. Just in time, a reckless driver didn't hit her with his truck.
To Heather's surprise, her heartbeat didn't skip. She can't even feel a thing anymore despite how many people have been eying me with judgement.
"Bakit ba parang kasalanan ko? Sa pedestrian lane ako dumaan!" Suminghal siya at balak nang kutusan 'tong elementary student tingin ng tingin, pero agad ding natigilan dahil sa pamilyar na tawa sa gilid.
She didn't have to check who it was, the way the chills down her spine lingered was enough for her to recognize him. It was the nightmare that came to life.
"Nangangaway ka parin ng bata, hanggang ngayon? Grabe naman Heather!"
Instead of batting him an eye, Heather just gave him my fakest smile and pace the way towards the entrance of her school.
"And you still have the audacity to act like nothing happened, Rozen Blake. As always."
For the love of Heathenian Gods and Goddesses, she know this town is small but can she please stop seeing him, even in her dreams? She also know that they're literally neighbors all their lives, from their houses to their schools. But please, just let hee live her life away from that bastard.
And no, Heather don't hate him, she just don't want to see him ever again. Nor have a conversation with him. Nor to have nightmares about him. Nor to remember him just with a single song.
Fuck mercury retrograde!
Heather and her usual dark OOTD, entered the class storming, but that was actually an understatement from what her day had turned out. The summative test about Heathenian Mythology has been postponed, and that being her only subject for the day, she had the chance to do her part time job in this abandoned boarding house.
The tenant asked Heather to banish the spirit that's been lingering in room 3, so that's what she did. With her fist and a broken clown mask that serves as her protection, she easily cleared the whole place and made the lady in black disappear for good.
Because unlike when she was younger, she is now stronger and better at facing non-living things. She can even touch them now. For she came to realize that the real horrors aren't just the spirit that haunts a place, but also real humans with evil intentions and of course a human mind who can't even forget. This adult life has battered her so much that she can now smack a ghost in the face but can't even move on from things that happened years ago. Like damn it. Is this the curse of being different?
Heather hugged the broken clown masked that has been with her since she was a kid. Upon walking her way back home, she can't help but to laugh off all the bullying and therapy she faced just for not wanting to throw this away. Because the world said that was a devil's thing, but it made her stronger in fighting spirits so she keep it secretly. They said it whisper things, but she can't even hear anything, anymore. She hardly forgot when was the last time it talked, so she shrugged it off at made it as a props whenever she doing my part time jobs.
Because it indeed has a protection spell or whatsoever in it. And it seems like the world didn't know how it feels like to be helpless and pathetic, that's why they're so easy at throwing away the things that made people stronger.
"The sunset again," She mumbled to myself as she waited for the traffic light to turn into my favor. In the same pedestrian lane, she saw the same elementary student earlier. But this time, she was bruised and covered in blood.
In a snap, her heart finally skipped a beat as things dawned on her. The elementary girl was a ghost all along, and Rozen saw her! She mean, that idiot saw the ghost! Which isn't possible anyway, because he is a normal person. He can't even see where his boundaries should be, what more about the non-living things?
And a normal person being able to see a spirit, could mean some things, and one of them is that their time is nearing its end. Heather was frozen, stunned and speechless. She can't even feel my feet nor breath properly, when all of a sudden, a loud thud rang into my ears.
"Hala yung binata!"
"Gago, huminto ka, may nabangga ka!"
"Shit, tumawag kayo na ambulansya!"
Right at that moment, the strength in her being has all disappeared into the thin air. She was in that state for a minute until her muscle memory decided to betray her and face the truth. Just like this morning, She saw Rozen Blake, but this time he was meters away. The same innocent face and messy hair, wearing his favorite blue sweatshirt.
He was confused, staring at the bloodbathed body lying on the ground that exactly looks like him. Heather's heart, her heart was sinking as his gaze met my eyes.
It was dead on the spot.
Although the world tried to save him, the ambulance came and his spirit went where his corpse was heading, but it was too late. Too late for him. Too late for her. Too late for them, for the world, for the heavens above. It was too late.
With a heavy heart, Heather arrived at her house with uncontrollable tears. She was so lost, she didn't know what to do. Either to help even though it's useless, to see him in that hospital or to stay out of it. She was trembling so much she had to take a moment before gaining the strength to come home. One snap and here she is, in this empty house with nothing but herself. Too much for having a nightshift father. But at that time, she believed it was better that way so she can cry myself to sleep. However, imagine how the hole in her chest got triggered the moment Rozen's sister started calling on her phone.
"Y-Yes, Rayne?" She was not in the mood to answer it at first, but she absently did, upon reaching the messy living room.
"Ate Heather! Huhu! My brother is dead! He was pronounced dead!" Rayne was sobbing so hard Heather had to try her best to decipher her words. She then turned on the lights and went upstairs to rot in her bed. "B-but he suddenly came back to life and went missing!"
Seems like hee jaw literally dropped the moment she opened her room's door and upon hearing his sister's sentiments.
Rozen is lying on her bed, naked. With a smug look on his face.
"Rayne, I think just I found him."